Unchained Melodies
by VividBrunette
Summary: Stefan Salvatore is an engineer in the small town of Mystic Falls, Elena is a simple waitress in Mystic Grill. Will they have an epic 'love from first sight' story or will it change their lives completely. One town. Many characters. Sarcasm, comedy, heartbreak, awing moments, and Stefan in a towel ensued. Not your usually chick flick love story AU/AH.
1. Chapter 1

Stefan shook his head as he typed on his laptop at work. He was working overtime to get the promotion that his boss has promised him. Sure it was tiring, but it meant a huge jump in his career. At the age of 26,Stefan was gifted with the most beautiful green eyes, a warm posture, an almost permanent smile on his face, and it did help that he worked out twice a week, and it was all showing. Stefan was one hell of a engineer . He received his master at a very young age considering other students.

Stefan glanced at the wall clock and noticed that it was 10:00 P.M. . Stefan had been stressing the whole week, wanting nothing but to get this month over with so he can get his promised, long-awaited promotion. He had been putting extra hours into work ,and it was really paying off, if his boss's, Mr. Anderson, praises this morning was any indication. Although Stefan was pretty happy about his progress, he couldn't help but feel like he was missing something. He stopped typing for a moment and looked at his cell phone to find three text messages from Katherine. That's when it had hit. He was supposed to meet with Katherine at 9 in a restaurant just two blocks away from where he worked.

"Shit!" he muttered under his breath as he quickly saved his work while trying to grab his car keys, and working on the buttons on his jacket in a hurry that he almost had hurt himself in the process. It was less than five minutes when he was making a run for his car in the company's parking lot. His car was the only car there, the lights were all off, and there was no one in the building except for the occasional janitors, but he had grown quite accustomed to that when the company's creepy hallways that looked like that movie _I Will Always Know What You Did Last Summer_ stopped scaring the shit out of him.

He cursed in his native Italian, when he arrived and saw Katherine's car but couldn't find a parking spot. He hurriedly ran down the street, after the successful mission of finding a parking spot, trying to look casual and tidy but failing miserably. Reaching the restaurant, he stopped to catch his breath and compose himself. Looking through the glass door, he found Katherine waiting and by the looks of it, she wasn't so flattered to see him late. If looks could kill Stefan would've been a very dead man by now.

"I am so sorry, I just was caught up in this new project and…" he started finding an excuse that would let Katherine take mercy on him, only for her to cut him off.

" Do you realize how much of a idiot I felt sitting here waiting?" she asked, huffing, although she wasn't upset or hurt, since it was expected. Stefan was good in his job, but he was over dedicated, which Katherine always complained about. Katherine was his best friend since they had been in diapers, and unlike him, she was the life of the party, she loved partying around and having casual, non-too serious relationships. Despite all these differences, he loved to the moon and back. Katherine was a beautiful brunette with thick curls , seductive eyes, and to die for body, she had curves in all the right places and every guy would die to get her attention. He never did though, she was sure attractive as hell but Stefan wasn't the one to fool around and have one-night stands, especially not with his best friend, he cringed at the thought.

He smiled as he took a seat across from her. Fixing his now wrinkled grey shirt.

Then his mind wandered back to that place in his mind, the reason why he had crossed the thought of relationships from his mind. He still remembers her crystal clear, her blue eyes staring at him, her smile, her laugh, when he would make her giggle… He soon shook his head. This was a box that he was not going to open again. At least not now, not when his life was about to get better.

"I am sorry, Kate. It is just …," he sighed. "I know what are you thinking right now, 'Your social life is crumbling'," he imitated in a girly valley voice.

That actually got Katherine to laugh so hard that she started chocking on the glass of champagne that she was drinking causing everyone to look at them. Then she scrunched her nose at him, " First of all, I am a city girl so don't you ever dare make an impression of a valley girl's voice in a failed attempt to imitate my voice or I will set you on fire in you sleep," she glared at him daring him to do it once more.

"Second of all, Salvatore, that would be applicable if your social was existent," she said huffing and throwing her hair over her shoulder, taking a sip of the expensive wine she was drinking. "When is the last time that you ever went out?" she challenged.

"Fine," he groaned. "So, yes, I admit I need to go out more often but for now I want to focus on my career. I am looking at a 30% raise in my salary!" he exclaimed, throwing his hand in the air.

"You know you could always pump a few dollar out of your mommy and daddy dearest," she said only half joking as she leaned back in her chair, letting her sassy attitude surface, and crossing her legs which only made them look longer, everyone could agree that her long tan legs were one of her best assets including her hips. The Salvatores' wealth was no secret especially in small towns like Mystic Falls. The Salvatore family had enough money to sustain a small city. Their name was well known in Virginia.

"Well if that was my intention from the beginning, I wouldn't have left at all," He smiled halfheartedly, because the truth is his parents saw it as a disgrace to the family that Stefan get to be an inert at a engineering company. But Stefan loves what he does and was hell bent on proving that to everyone even though he secretly missed his parents and his brother.

"Well, what do you say I take you out this weekend?" she said. He opened his mouth to come up with an excuse but she shut him off, " At least so you can make up for the last 10 times you bailed on me!" she gave him that look that only devils could give, daring him to argue.

"Okay, when and where?" he asked figuring that he lost this one. Katherine never had a trouble getting what she wanted. "Trouble is for those who don't get what they want, and I always get what I want," she would always joke about it. She was right, she always got what she wanted. Always.

"8pm, Saturday, Mystic bar," she made a disgusted face, clearly disapproving of the choice of the place. She was so up-scale. He internally laughed, but caught the smile when he saw Katherine giving him death glares.

"Very well then. Can we now eat dinner? I am starving," he exclaimed, having gone over 7 hours without food.

"What's good here anyways?" he asked.

She just smiled and shook her at him. She couldn't believe that she had been keeping up with him for over 24 years.

* * *

It was Saturday and Stefan was standing in front of the mirror with two shirts. A deep blue V-neck shirt, which looked casual and laid back, and another shirt which looked too business-ish. He went for the blue one, making a quick work over his hair, grabbing his car keys, and walking out the door.

He arrived 8 P.M. sharp and after presenting his ID to the guards, he stood in the hallway almost startled. He never thought he saw all these people in Mystic bar like…ever. He walked inside dialing Katherine to see if she arrived, while look down on his phone, he didn't notice that another body was coming towards him, and they quickly ran into each other.

"Watch out," called the girl. Stefan raised his head to look at her. She looked mighty pissed at him. " Look what you done, you douche!" she said trying to wipe the drink that was now falling from her dress all the way down her legs, that when Stefan took the time to notice her fully, she was beautiful, big brown eyes, perfect tan, tall brown hair, and a fucking great body.

He just stared at her, tongue-twisted not knowing how to reply. " Don't you know how to talk? God you men and your big egos, going around acting all tough on us women." She shouted over the blasting music.

"I am sorry. Okay I haven't seen you, I was calling my friend and I just… Jesus Christ, I said sorry," he said when she glared at him.

"Douche," she said walking away.

"Bitch," she said under her breath.

He looked around and spotted Katherine. "Finally," he muttered.

"Kate," he shouted.

"Steffy-boo, hey," she said hugging him tightly as if she hadn't seen him the day before.

"Are you drunk?" he asked, amused with the whole situation.

"No!" she told him sternly. "Maybe a little…," she said gesturing with her fingers to the guy she was with that she wanted to dance.

_Well, there you are jackass, left all alone… again,_ his drifted from his thoughts as he saw Damon, his older brother, enter the club. He smirked at Stefan the instant he saw him.

"Fancy seeing you here, baby bro," Damon said, giving him his signature up-to-no good smirk.

" What are you doing here Damon?" he said with a certain venom in his voice, he and Damon were very close growing up but as they grew up, Damon took his parents side choosing to invest with the family's money, while Stefan wanted something more, he wanted to be known as Stefan, just Stefan, not Salvatore, the rich, wealthy, spoiled dick. Plus Damon was.. Damon. It is really hard to find words to descried his brother. He and Stefan shared nothing, not the looks and definitely not the morals of beliefs they held in life. Damon had blue eyes, and black hair. He inherited their father's mean strike, while Stefan inherited his mothers warmness. Damon was all about women and alcohol, he would during in the morning, afternoon, night, and all the times in-between. While Stefan always drank to help himself relax, Damon did it on daily basis. At some point Stefan started counting how many years Damon still had to live considering the amount of alcohol he consumed.

"Just hanging out, charming the ladies, ya know, nothing new," he said. " The real question is what are you doing here?" he asked, his voice filled with curiosity that he was trying hard to hide but failing. Stefan didn't just go out clubbing on a Saturday night. "Aren't you the fun police?" he teased, sarcasm dripping from his mouth.

"I am here with Katherine," Stefan said, cutting to the chase, because honestly he couldn't stand his brother one more minute.

As if on cue, Katherine returned from the dance floor. "Ugh," she groaned.

" It is the hot, arrogant ass of a Salvatore," she said her voice dripping with as almost equal sarcasm as Damon's. " To what do we owe the pleasure Damon?" she asked, pretending to care.

" I am here for Barbie, where's she?" he asked, looking around.

"OMG!" Katherine shrieked. "Please tell me that you and Caroline aren't hooking up," she said hiding her face in her hands.

Damon just smirked. Katherine made a disgusted face, " I am gonna throw up," she said.

" Ha! Look who's talking!" he grinned, " Who is this?" pointing to the guy next to Katherine.

"Where's Fabio?" he added laughing.

That had earned him a swift kick in the shin. He yelped, but quickly smiled when he saw Caroline approaching.

"Ooo, there goes your girlfriend," Stefan said, figuring it was time to retaliate.

"She's not my girlfriend, I don't do blondes, brother, that's your thing," Damon smirked.

That had gotten to Stefan because he drew his fist back and punched Damon straight in his nose, sending her crashing to the ground. Everyone gasped, and Caroline came running to Damon and kneeling down on the floor next to him.

"What has gotten into you?" she yelled at Stefan

"Still a sensitive subject, I see," Damon said, wiping the blood that had now made its way down his chin.

Stefan just glared at him and walked away intending on leaving this place for good and just sleeping it off.

Just when he was about to reach the front door, the girl he bumped into appeared in front of him.

" Listen here, I am fucking sorry, okay?" he threw his hands in air asking himself again about why he came in the first place.

" Umm.. no, I just wanted to apologize for my earlier actions, it is just I've been having a rough day, that's all. I am Elena, " she said, looking at him. "Would you care to join me for a drink?" she asked, pointing at the bar behind them, she tried to gauge his reaction, when he didn't answer, although his face showed none.

So he could choose to accept it, and have fun for one night, or let it go, just like he had with every other girl. Yet there was something in her eyes that was different from all those other girls.

" I am Stefan, and I would love to join you for a drink," he said. She smiled and led the way. As he followed her he didn't notice that this was the first time he ever look at and didn't' compare to the blue eyed beauty that he once called his. And that will be the fine line between imagination and reality.

* * *

A/N: Thank you so much for reading, make sure to leave a review telling me if I should continue this or not and your opinions/suggestions about the first chapter. Thanks again in advance.

Xoxo


	2. Chapter 2

"May I have your name?" Elena laughed sarcastically at Stefan as he sipped on the drink he ordered.

Stefan face flushed as he realized he did not tell Elena about his, and that he probably looked like a geek.

" I am sorry, I am Stefan," he said giving her a small, fake smile. _Real smooth Stefan, real smooth_, he thought to himself. In all honesty he was still feeling exhilarated from the night's earlier events, and the fact that Katherine did not come looking for him, only proved that he truly screwed up.

"I am a waitress in here," she said making a casual conversation out of the awkward situation.

Stefan looked at her in shock but chose not say anything about it. You would have never guessed she was a waitress, she looked like she popped out of a fashion magazine. She was wearing a short black dress that was barely reaching her knees, it had long sleeves that were made of lace and was hugging her in all the right places. She was wearing red high heels which only made her legs look longer.

" I am an engineer at Bridger Photonics," he said.

"Well you are definitely cooler than me," she said taking a huge sip of her drink.

" I am really sorry about my earlier actions. I don't usually act that way," she said guiltily.

"Don't sweat it. It is really fine. I guess we both were having a bad night," he grinned.

" You too?" she asked leaning forward a little bit, she figured the alcohol was starting to take over , since she was feeling over confident with a stranger.

"Yea, family dysfunction," he laughed trying to lighten the situation.

* * *

Damon eyed his brother wearily from across the bar, while Caroline worked on dabbing a wet cloth over his chin trying to wipe off the blood that had ticked down from his nose. Caroline kept fussing the whole time about how Damon should see a doctor to make sure nothing is broken. But the was the last of Damon's concerns because Stefan was sitting with some girl that he could not recognize, drinking a laughing about something she said.

"Who's that girl with my brother?" Damon asked Caroline, pointing at his brother and the mystery girl. Caroline looked at where Damon was pointing and knitted her eyebrows together, confused that Stefan was still here. Just when she was about to tell Damon that he should tone it down because the last thing they need is Stefan throwing punches again, the girl flipped her hair over her shoulder, that's when Caroline got a glimpse of her face. She released a breathless gasp and quickly got rid of the cloth in her hand.

"Just stay here, okay? I'll be right back," Caroline said frantically, although she was trying to sound neutral but Damon could see right through her .

Caroline made her way to Stefan and Elena, and Damon felt that it was his duty to smack that smile off his brother's face.

* * *

" So umm… I really have to go because I have to run some errands tomorrow and I have to go to bed early," he said, making a poor excuse, but he just was not in the social mood tonight. " I'll see you around," he continued knowing he may not see her again.

She looked a little sad but quickly tried to hide it with a smile.

"Yeah, I it was really nice to meet you," she said extending her hand and going for a hand shake, trying to hide the fact that she felt embarrassment laced with rejection.

_He's just a stranger,Elena, _she tried to reason with herself, although she could not help but feel a little sad.

He eyed her hand for a moment deciding whether to bid her goodnight and leave or take a chance with this complete stranger. She again popped in his mind. Her blue eyes , her blonde hair, her smile…

He quickly shook his head quickly, which did not go unnoticed by Elena. _I have to move on, she wants me to move on, _he thought.

"Tell you what, I'll give you my number and we can meet here some other time," he said, as he saw her eyes light up somehow.

"Elena, I need to talk to you," Caroline said, suddenly appearing next to Elena and startling her.

"Now!" she said in a serious tone, one that her perky blond friend rarely used.

Elena eyed Caroline, confused. It was never Caroline-like to just intervene without introducing herself .

Stefan kept looking at Caroline and Elena.

"I am so sorry," Elena said, finally breaking the ice. "This is Caroline my friend."

Stefan laughed, "Oh I know Caroline," he said as his laugh subsided.

" You know each other?" Elena said looking back and forth between Stefan and Caroline.

"Yeah, my brother and her are an item, sort of…" Stefan said in a disgusted tone.

They were 'friends with benefits' as Caroline liked to call it.

Elena raised an eyebrow at her friend and grinned at the profound information that her friend didn't tell her about. Caroline just shook her head telling her that she would explain later, while tugging at her hand.

Elena stood and was about to excuse herself when a handsome, dark-haired, blue-eyed guy appeared in front of her.

Stefan rolled his eyes.

Of course, does not the devil always have to have the last words.

Damon smirked as he approached him taking Elena in from foot to toe, which did not go unnoticed by Stefan nor by Elena.

"Stef, I was searching for you," he said, with upmost sincere concern, and if Stefan didn't know any better, he would have believed it

Stefan just blankly stared at him. Elena had sensed that it was time to officially end the night.

" I'll see you," she told Stefan.

Damon looked at her feigning embarrassment. " Pardon my little brother over here. Clearly he forgot his manners, I am Stefan's brother. Damon. Damon Salvatore," Damon said taking Elena's hand and kissing it all the while keeping his eyes on hers.

_Salvatore? As in Giuseppe Salvatore?_ She paled.

**A/N: Thanks to every one who had left a review on the first chapter, you guys rock 3 I loved the suggestion about Damon and Kathrine, and I am starting to consider it. Also next chapter will include a LOT of revelations about the Salvatores. I hope you guys like it and don't forget to leave a review. Xoxo**


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